The present invention relates generally to hot melt adhesive material dispensing systems, and more particularly to a new and improved hot melt adhesive material dispensing system, comprising a pair of multiple-outlet gear pumps for supplying hot melt adhesive material to a plurality of diversion flow valves, and a plurality of adhesive manifold plates for conducting or routing the adhesive material from the multiple-outlet gear pumps to the individual diversion flow valves, wherein, firstly, in order to in fact supply the hot melt adhesive material to particular ones of the plurality of diversion flow valves located at particular longituindally arrayed locations, fluid flow circuits are effectively provided upon opposite sides of a plurality of adhesive manifold plates so as to in fact achieve the particular fluid flow circuitry as desired and required while nevertheless minimizing the number of adhesive manifold plates, the number of seals operatively associated with such manifold plates, and the potential leakage paths or sites normally present in conjunction with a larger number of adhesive manifold plates, and wherein, secondly, assembly and disassembly procedures for the system are simplified.
In connection with hot melt adhesive material dispensing systems for dispensing hot melt adhesive materials through means of, for example, a plurality of flow control valves or discharge valves fluidically connected to a plurality of downstream dispensing or discharge nozzles which are arranged within a predetermined array so as to deposit the hot melt adhesive material at predetermined locations, or within a predetermined pattern, upon a particular substrate, the hot melt adhesive material is routed from a suitable source or supply of hot melt adhesive material, through one or more supply pumps, and through a plurality of fluid flow paths fluidically connecting the supply pump or pumps to the aforenoted discharge or flow control valves and the dispensing nozzles. When a substantially large number of discharge or flow control valves, and operatively associated or fluidically connected dispensing nozzles, are employed within a particular system in order to achieve the deposition of the hot melt adhesive material in accordance with a particular or predetermined pattern upon a particular substrate, the fluidic logistics of such a system can become quite intricate and complex. More particularly, and as is conventional, the system usually comprises an adhesive manifold which comprises a plurality of adhesive manifold plates for fluidically conducting or routing the adhesive material from the output or supply pumps to the individual flow control valves. However, since each fluid flow path from the one or more output or supply pumps to each individual flow control valve and its operatively associated dispensing nozzle must effectively be separate and distinct from the other fluid flow paths extending from the one or more output or supply pumps to the other individual flow control valves and their operatively associated dispensing nozzles, an inordinate number of fluid path separation plates, seal members, and the like are necessarily required in order to render the system fluidically viable. As has been noted, however, the number of such structural components renders the system intricate and complex, and in addition, also presents an undesirably large number of sites or locations from which potential leakage problems can occur. Still further, if cleaning, maintenance, repair, or replacement operations are to be performed in connection with any one of the major components of such conventional hot melt adhesive dispensing systems, all of the components have to be disassembled and ultimately reassembled. These operations are obviously tedious, time-consuming, and costly in connection with productivity down-time.
A need therefore exists in the art for a new and improved hot melt adhesive material dispensing system for use in connection with a pair of multiple-outlet or multiple-output planetary metering gear pumps for supplying hot melt adhesive material to a plurality of diversion flow control valves wherein, in order to in fact supply, route, or conduct the hot melt adhesive material from the multiple-output gear pumps to the individual diversion flow valves in order to achieve a particular hot melt adhesive deposition pattern, the particular fluid flow circuitry as desired and required must be provided, however, the number of adhesive manifold plates needs to be reduced so as to minimize the overall size of the adhesive manifold, the number of seals operatively associated with the plurality of adhesive manifold plates, and the number of potential leakage paths or sites which would normally or otherwise be present in conjunction with a larger number of adhesive manifold plates characteristic of conventional or PRIOR ART adhesive manifolds utilized within conventional or PRIOR ART hot melt adhesive material dispensing systems. In addition, a need exists for a new and improved hot melt adhesive material dispensing system wherein the various major components of the system are independently mounted or disposed within the overall system, as opposed to dependent upon or interdependent with the other major components of the system, whereby if a particular major component of the system needs to be cleaned, maintained, repaired, or replaced, the other major components of the system do not necessarily have to be disassembled and reassembled.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved hot melt adhesive material dispensing system for dispensing hot melt adhesive materials to an array of flow control valves.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved hot melt adhesive material dispensing system for use in connection with a pair of multiple-outlet or multiple-output planetary metering gear pumps for supplying hot melt adhesive material to an array of diversion flow control valves.
An additional object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved hot melt adhesive material dispensing system for use in connection with a pair of multiple-outlet or multiple-output planetary metering gear pumps for supplying hot melt adhesive material to an array of diversion flow control valves wherein such system can effectively overcome the various operational drawbacks and disadvantages characteristic of conventional or PRIOR ART hot melt adhesive material dispensing systems.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved hot melt adhesive material dispensing system for use in connection with a pair of multiple-outlet or multiple-output planetary metering gear pumps for supplying hot melt adhesive material to an array of diversion flow control valves wherein, in order to in fact supply, route, or conduct the hot melt adhesive material from the multiple-output gear pumps to the individual diversion flow valves of the array of flow control valves so as to achieve a particular hot melt adhesive deposition pattern, the particular fluid flow circuitry as desired and required is able to be provided and yet the number of adhesive manifold plates, the number of corresponding fluidic seals, and the number of potential leakage sites, is able to be substantially reduced.
A last object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved hot melt adhesive material dispensing system for use in connection with a pair of multiple-outlet or multiple-output planetary metering gear pumps for supplying hot melt adhesive material to an array of diversion flow control valves wherein, in order to in fact supply, route, or conduct the hot melt adhesive material from the multiple-output gear pumps to the individual diversion flow control valves so as to achieve a particular hot melt adhesive deposition pattern, the particular fluid flow circuitry as desired and required is able to be provided and yet the number of adhesive manifold plates is able to be reduced so as to minimize the overall size of the adhesive manifold, the number of seals operatively associated with the plurality of adhesive manifold plates, and the number of potential leakage paths or sites which would normally or otherwise be present in conjunction with a larger number of adhesive manifold plates characteristic of conventional or PRIOR ART adhesive manifolds utilized within conventional or PRIOR ART hot melt adhesive material dispensing systems, and wherein further, the assembly and disassembly of the adhesive manifold components is substantially simplified.
The foregoing and other objectives are achieved in accordance with the teachings and principles of the present invention through the provision of a new and improved hot melt adhesive material dispensing system, for use in connection with a pair of multiple-outlet or multiple-output planetary metering gear pumps for supplying hot melt adhesive material to a plurality of diversion flow control valves, wherein an adhesive manifold is fluidically associated with the pair of multiple-outlet or multiple-output planetary metering gear pumps and the plurality of diversion flow control valves so as to supply hot melt adhesive material to the array of diversion flow control valves. In particular, the adhesive manifold comprises an input manifold, a distribution, a recirculation plate, and an output manifold, and in accordance with the unique and novel fluidic arrangement constructed or developed in accordance with the principles and teachings of the present invention, fluid flow paths are provided upon opposite surfaces of the distribution and recirculation plates, as well as through such distribution and recirculation plates, with solid plate portions being effectively interposed between particular portions of such fluid flow paths so as to define, separate, and preserve the fluidic integrity of such fluid flow paths.
Considered alternatively, the fluid flow paths conventionally fabricated upon four plates are now effectively fabricated upon the opposite sides of two plates such that the fluid flow paths of four plates have been integrated onto two plates with solid plate portions interposed or integrally formed therebetween. In this manner, the intricate and relatively complex fluidic circuitry characteristic of the adhesive manifold is able to be provided and preserved, and yet the number of adhesive manifold plates is able to be reduced so as to in turn minimize the overall size of the adhesive manifold, the number of seals operatively associated with the plurality of adhesive manifold plates, and the number of potential leakage paths or sites which would normally or otherwise be present in conjunction with a larger number of adhesive manifold plates characteristic of conventional or PRIOR ART adhesive manifolds utilized within conventional or PRIOR ART hot melt adhesive material dispensing systems. In addition, the output manifold, the recirculation plate, and the distribution plate, as well as the multiple-outlet planetary metering gear pumps and the recirculation pump, are all readily and easily removed from the input manifold, and similarly with respect to the plurality of arrayed diversion flow valves and the adapter plate with respect to the output manifold, so as to enable operator personnel to easily, simply, and quickly perform any necessary maintenance, repair, parts replacement, cleaning, or similar operations upon the various major components of the system with a minimal amount of system operational downtime.